Today's opening by the Mayor of an extension to Cycling Superhighway 2, including new safety features, is a positive development. The new stretch to Stratford will physically separate cyclists from other traffic for much of the route, using concrete strips. Meanwhile new cyclist-only traffic lights will give bikes a head-start over other traffic and separate them from left-turning vehicles. At the same time the notorious stretch of one-way road around Aldgate Tube, where a French student died this summer, will be replaced with two-way traffic.

These are all hopeful developments; they are sorely needed. Yesterday was a grim day for London cyclists: one man in his sixties was knocked off his bike and killed when he was hit by a truck on Mile End Road, which happens to be part of CS2. Another suffered serious head injuries when he was hit by a coach in Holborn.

The existing blue-painted cycle superhighways are welcome but in some cases they may actually aggravate the vulnerability of cyclists. They are not enforceable and there is no legal sanction for motorists who drive in them, yet they give cyclists a false sense of security. Indeed at last month’s inquest into the death of a cyclist in 2011, the coroner said just this, adding that the cycle strip at Bow was “an accident waiting to happen”.

The Mayor’s new scheme is important but it needs to be extended with a much bigger push to protect cycle lanes in London more widely. Where possible, they should be segregated, like the new section of CS2; elsewhere TfL should exclude other traffic from them and ensure that they are backed with the same sanctions that keep bus lanes clear. These changes take political will. But unless we have this kind of radical change, London cyclists will continue to be at unnecessary risk.

The Big Apple’s choice

Londoners tend to take an interest in New York, as a global metropolis with something of the same cachet and challenges as our capital. And the election yesterday of its new mayor, the Democrat Bill de Blasio, is a dramatic development. He is the first Democratic New York mayor in 20 years — and he resembles Ken Livingstone more than Boris Johnson. Mayors of New York, like London ones, loom large on the national stage and Mr de Blasio, with his emphasis on redistribution and social equity, will be a refreshing new voice in US politics. Mayor Bloomberg, who has a close connection to London, served the city well but New Yorkers were receptive to change. Last night’s shift from plutocrat to redistributive liberal is nothing if not radical.

London will look forward to exchanging ideas about the running of a global city with the new incumbent. Policies such as zero tolerance on crime, congestion charging or public bikes are ideas that start in one big city and get taken up by others. Other policies, such as Mr de Blasio’s reform of the New York equivalent of stop-and-search, will be relevant to us too. We wish him the very best.

VIP visas

The Home Secretary, Theresa May, is announcing a speedier visa service for “high-value” non-EU executives with “strong links” to the UK. This “bespoke service” is a welcome development, albeit a very limited one: the pilot scheme is aimed at just 100 people. We need to attract foreign investment: there are few greater deterrents for overseas business-people than an onerous visa regime. This paper has campaigned for change, especially for Chinese visitors. Ministers can afford to be less cautious.